Mystery as Oliver cleared to ride on

Chris Roots, Andrew Eddy

DAMIEN OLIVER will continue to ride in the spring carnival after Racing Victoria chief executive Rob Hines broke his silence on Wednesday on the investigation into an alleged bet placed by the champion jockey.

Hines said an explanation would follow the carnival after allegations last month in Fairfax Media revealed Oliver was being investigated for backing a rival runner in a race in 2010. Innuendo has clouded the carnival but Racing Victoria had until now refused to comment.

Meanwhile, the effectiveness of Victorian racing's Compliance Assurance Team will be tested on Friday when Racing Victoria stewards open inquiries into two potential incidents of race-day treatment on horses.

Over the past month, stewards have interviewed four trainers - Robert Smerdon, Con Karakatsanis, Jim Conlan and Nathan Schofield - over possible race-day treatment of their horses and on Thursday will inquire further with the two interstate trainers, Schofield and Karakatsanis.

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Inquiries into possible same-day treatment with Smerdon and Conlan have been put back until next week. Treatments such as stomach-tubing are banned within 24 hours of a race. In Schofield's case, stipes

Kane Ashby and Dion Villella raided a Geelong property a on Tuesday and claimed they were hindered in their investigations by the trainer, who refused to open his locked car when requested.

Chief steward Terry Bailey said at Tuesday's initial hearing that he could not be certain that Schofield's runner Beseech had not been treated and so scratched the horse from the last race on Cup day.

On Saturday, stewards allowed Sydney sprinter Howmuchdoyou-loveme to start in the group2 Yellowglen Stakes after they opened an inquiry into suspicions he may have been treated on race day.

The stewards, headed by Bailey, questioned trainer Con Karakat-sanis and his father Tony after a morning raid on stables at Flemington where they were staying. The team allegedly found a bag containing paraphernalia used to drench a horse. Both men denied they had treated the horse. Bailey will open inquiries next week into a potential race-day treatment of the Jim Conlan-trained Rekindled Interest before last month's Turnbull Stakes.

Stewards also adjourned an inquiry into the scratching of the Robert Smerdon-trained Shewan an hour before he was due to start in a race at Caulfield on October 13.

Stewards questioned Smerdon about ''haematomas'' found on Shewan and a stablemate, Mosheen, which was permitted to run in that day's Tristarc Stakes.

Stewards scratched Shewan but Bailey said they ''were not prepared to say'' Mosheen had been treated. ''It appears on face value it [Shewan] has been treated today,'' he said.

Also listed for Friday is the appeal by jockey James McDonald against a 14-meeting suspension after Tuesday's Cup when stewards found that he directed his mount out to make heavy contact with Sanagas.